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Frequently Asked Questions Note: This page is continuous update Invoices: Q: Will I receive an invoice? A: Yes, invoices for 2025 are distributed by end of February. For members who have paid the assessment each year, the invoice will include dues for 2025 only. If your property is not current on any dues from 2017 to 2024, the amount outstanding will be included in the 2025 invoice accordingly. Q: How do I pay my dues? A: There are Three options you can take to pay for such scenarios:
Q: How do I pay for multiple properties online? A: There are two options for the same as below, you can choose whichever is convenient for you.
Communication: Q: How do I get informed/notified about various Events/Activities/open positions/volunteer opportunities? A: We publish all of these, on our website. Details for various events that are happening for the given month are available under the Calendar on the website. We send out Announcement emails for those to all members who are registered online for whom we have correct email address. So, we will strongly recommend members to register online from our website and subscribe for email communication. We make announcement for these on our Facebook page. Additionally, we send out specific announcement for various open positions and volunteer opportunities with details of those as and when applicable to members via email. Q: I have been sending questions via contact us, however either the response was very late, or I didn’t receive a response at all. What is going on? A: Kindly note that the LPPOA Board is comprised of volunteers. Each board member must balance his or her personal and professional responsibilities along with community interest. Your patience is appreciated. All communications are being read and will be addressed as soon as possible. In some cases, the questions are referred to another person and it takes time to determine a response. Q: What options do I have to voice my questions/concerns to LPPOA Board other than “Contact US” from the website? A: There are few options as below: 1) We have regularly planned monthly board meetings on the second Monday of each month. At the end of the LPPOA business part of the meeting, we provide an open Q&A forum for members to ask their questions/ voice their concerns/comments and expect a response, if the question could not be answered/addressed within the meeting, we will take a follow up and get back to you on the same once we have an answer for it.2) We have a board managed and moderated Facebook page for our members “Lake Parsippany – LPPOA”. You can post your question/comment there. 3) We have “Ask Me Anything-AMA” sessions facilitated by the President and fellow board members, you can join those session and have your question/concern addressed. We had two sessions in April and based on member participation on those, we have planned to have monthly AMA sessions (generally 2 weeks after the Monthly board meeting) as another forum for members for the same. You can find the details of the session on the calendar. 4) You can contact your District Representative Budget: Q: Who determines what fee I must pay? A: The community elects or the existing board members appoint members to the LPPOA board to represent community interest and fiduciary obligation to LPPOA. The board collectively assesses the costs for operating the lake to determine the yearly budget and the membership dues are determined based on the approved budget in an LPPOA board meeting. Q: When do budget meetings take place? A: All information about the budget process and budget meetings can be found in the Bylaws. Art. II, Ch. 3. Meetings notifications are also provided on the calendar of the website. Q: Where can I get a copy of the 2025 budget? A: The LPPOA budget for the current year can be found on the website under the “About” section of the website. Q: What is the Board doing to keep membership fees from increasing? A: Every year the board works diligently to review the budget and expenses to run the lake, and the membership fee is structured to meet those obligations. We are also aiming to reduce the collection balance and legal fees. Ideally, if all members paid the assessed fees, it would help the board keep the membership fees at a stable rate. Q: Why can’t there be a cap on fees? Q: What is to stop fees from rising to an unaffordable level? A: It is true that expenses increase annually but the Board has no intention of raising fees without reasonable justification. While we hope all residents will pay their fair share, it will take some time to determine how many will be in arrears each year. However, the goal is to keep the dues and assessments reasonable and stable. Consider if every property paid $700, the budget would be about 1.4 million dollars. That is just not required to operate the lake. Keep in mind, however, that the fees to maintain the lake and property also include taxes and insurance costs, which will fluctuate. Membership: Q: What is the cost of membership? A: Please visit our Membership Page for details. Q: Last year I paid $140 for basic maintenance of the Lake and its properties. Why do I have to pay $310 this year? A: This $310 is comprised of $190 for the annual budget and $120 for Reserves. Many options for the fee structure were proposed and discussed at great length, however in consideration of the 2025 budget, and to comply with the new Structural Integrity Law and DCA requirements, a $310.00 fee was decided as a membership fee for 2025. While going through the Reserve Study it was determined that many of the costs originally associated in prior years as Premium membership were actually mandated by state law and thus become common to the entire community. An analysis of the cost to provide a multi-tier membership vs a single tier membership identified that it is an additional cost of $5 per property to be a single tier membership. While the board acknowledges that more than 50% of our community is not interested in "all we have to offer" our decision was based upon the financial realities of paying to manage our association and the additional time and cost associated with managing multiple tiers of membership. Q: What if I own multiple properties within the original purchase tract? A: Each property that is owned as a separate lot will be assessed separately. The owner is responsible for each property’s assessment. Each individual property is entitled to full membership including voting rights, badges, etc. Q: What is a member in good standing? A: Members in good standing are defined as members who have paid membership dues, assessments, fines, late payment charges, collection costs and are in compliance with all By-Laws, Rules, Regulations and Policies of LPPOA. Exceptions are made in certain circumstances, in compliance with statues and regulations governing common interest communities. Q: What happens if membership fees are not paid? A: The association has a collection policy that is posted on our website. In short, there are late fees and interest charges and if the membership remains unpaid it is turned over to the attorney for collection activity. Owners who do not pay will be considered “not in good standing” under LPPOA’s By-Laws and the law affecting common interest communities. LPPOA has established a collection policy that will make the delinquent membership fee, late payment charge and costs of collections, including attorney’s fees, the responsibility of the delinquent property owner. Accounts that are not current will be assessed with late fees, then turned over for collections proceedings. Detailed information of the amount due for each account will be clearly stated in the invoice that is being sent to those property owners. If there are any additional questions, you can refer to the Collection Letter to understand your past due. A: Delinquent accounts are subject to consequences as outlined in our collection policy, which is available on our website. In brief, unpaid dues will result in the following:
Q: Is the LPPOA accepting membership from non-property owners? A: Yes. The LPPOA is accepting membership from Non-Property Owners; whether they are residing within the original purchase tract or not. Non-Property Owners may join as members with certain restrictions. Please visit the membership page on our website for more details. We limit but allow membership from outside of the Original Purchase Tract. Q: Now that all 2,200 property owners have access to all benefits, how will the access to beach, parking in parking lot, etc. be managed? A: All access would be first-come, first-serve basis, if the beach reaches a capacity for the day, we will have to regretfully turn certain members away for the day. Q: Last year I never got my badges A: This year, we have ordered credit card style badges to be mailed to each property via USPS. Q: I have not received my boat tags or badges yet. Can I still use the property? A: You are welcome to use the property as usual. While you wait for the tags and badges, please carry proof of payment while on the LPPOA property. Q: How do I join a Club? A: LPPOA offers many opportunities for those who want to join a Club. Please see the website for a description of each Club, when they meet, and contact information. General: Q: What is the Lake Parsippany Property Owners Association (LPPOA)? A: The LPPOA is a private lake association that maintains the lake, beaches, Clubhouse and other common property for the benefit of the Lake Parsippany community. Q: What is a Property Easement? A: The New Jersey Superior Court found Lake Parsippany is a common interest community and that each of the 2,200 property owners had been granted rights to the use of the common properties, including the lake, by virtue of an easement in their chain of title to their property, and by the fact that their lots are depicted on a map filed with Morris County at the time of the original development of the community. Q: What is the Assessment? A: The basic premise is that with the benefit of having certain deeded rights, you need to help with the burden of maintenance. The concept is often referred to as “Fair Share.” Basically, every home within the original purchase tract of Lake Parsippany will be required to pay annual dues. The annual dues for membership allow the property owners and their family members full privileges in the community. For details of all privileges available, please visit our Membership Page. Q: What is the Original Purchase Tract (OPT)? A: The map of Lake Parsippany was approved by the Township and filed with the Morris County Clerk at the time of the original development of the community, in eight sections, between 1933 and 1935. The properties included on that map are referred to as the original purchase tract. Q: Why has the LPPOA imposed a mandatory assessment? A: The LPPOA must comply with state regulations related to lakes and dams. The LPPOA also pays for taxes, insurance, lake water quality management and dam inspections, which became increasingly difficult to manage with only voluntary payments. Because of these obligations, multiple courts in New Jersey have affirmed the rights of a private lake association to assess all properties in their community, even when membership was previously voluntary. After reviewing the status of the law, in 2017, LPPOA imposed a mandatory assessment of all residents of the community as a basic maintenance fee. Q: Can the LPPOA do this? A: Yes, according to a NJ Superior Court judgment. A group of property owners (Plaintiffs) filed a lawsuit against LPPOA in opposition to the mandatory fee, and the entire community was later joined in a class action suit. The Plaintiffs argued that LPPOA did not have the authority to assess them, and the community, if it ever existed, had been abandoned long ago. The Court found not only did LPPOA have the authority to impose a mandatory assessment, but that it had administered the assessment fairly. Q: Who is affected? A: All properties that fall within the original purchase tract of Lake Parsippany are members of LPPOA, as a result of the litigation. Therefore, all of them are affected. Q: How do I register for an account online? A: Step by step instructions to register online is available the HERE. Q: Where can I get a copy of the bylaws? A: The bylaws can be found on the website under the “About” section of the website. Q: Where can I get a copy of the Rules and regulations? A: The Rules and Regulations can be found on the website under the ”About” section of the website. Q: I did not own the property and I am being billed for that time; why am I responsible to pay fees from that year? A: All property owners are required to pay fees from 2017. The owner of the property was served with a class action suit in 2017 and should have informed any buyer of the pending lawsuit. You will need to discuss this with your attorney and title company as this should have been disclosed at time of closing. Q: How is the board elected and how long is each term? A: All information about the Board elections can be found in the Bylaws. Art. IV.
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